England looking for their 17th victory on the trot [not quite matching our 23 yet] against Italy - the run should continue with the home advantage.
Ben Te'o in for Jonathan Joseph [not dropped..just trying something new I think] Jonny May returns on the wing and Danny Care and James Haskell both start...Mako Vunipola [love him] is on the bench, after injury....50th cap for Owen Farrell.


Good wins yesterday for Scotland and Ireland, who lead the table - they are our next two opponents...both tough games without any doubt.

RBS Six Nations Championship

Rank Team
Last updated 25 February 2017 at 18:53
1 Ireland 3 2 0 1 104 46 2 10
2 Scotland 3 2 0 1 72 57 1 9
3 England 2 2 0 0 40 32 0 8
4 Wales 3 1 0 2 62 57 1 5
5 France 3 1 0 2 47 54 1 5
6 Italy 2 0 0 2 17 96 0 0 0


http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/39067728" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;


So..we have won 22/22 against Italy and we are just two wins away from equalling the world record.


MATCH FACTS:

Head-to-head

England have won all 22 Tests against Italy, only failing to score a try in one of those matches - at Twickenham in 2013.
They have conceded an average of just three first-half points across their last seven home games against Italy.
England

England are on a national record run of 16 consecutive victories and are just two wins away from equalling the world record.
They are looking for a 10th consecutive Six Nations win, which would equal the tournament record they have set twice: 1882 to 1886 and 1922 to 1925.
The Red Rose are only two shy of becoming the first team to score 250 Six Nations tries.


Italy

Italy have lost nine consecutive Six Nations matches since a 22-19 win away to Scotland in February 2015.
They have lost 40 of their 43 previous away games in the Six Nations, with their only two wins in that time both coming at Murrayfield. They also drew against Wales in 2006.

Enjoy the match!

**with matches at Tottenham, Twickenham and Wembley this afternoon, I would give the North Circular in north-west London a big swerve..

What price England to score 60 points plus?

Prefer the national anthem without some Doris shrieking in the background though.

3..

A lot of pundits are talking of a big win..the Italians have not been great in the 6 Nations recently, some talk of replacing them with Ukraine..

I don't think it will be 60 points..let's go 42-10.

mkmel wrote:What price England to score 60 points plus?

not something we do to often against Italy for some reason

I enjoy having the italians in the competition.

Even if they don't play well, they ALWAYS look proper smart in their kit.

England are having a nightmare

Georgia

Not good so far. Should be 6 down at moment

indeed..Georgia.

Never seen these Italian tactics before. Unsettling England.

Referee having to explain the rules of the game to professional internationals...only in rugby.

Sean Dyche type of approach - how can I make it very difficult for them when I have inferior resources - think Jones will solve it at half time - but very very poor from England who with better hands could have 3 tries already even with the confusing Italian tactics

I have only vague understanding of the modern rugby rules, I have just lost all understanding!

Archie Claret wrote:I have only vague understanding of the modern rugby rules, I have just lost all understanding!

I'm not sure but I think you just run around a bit, jump into big piles on the floor and wait for the referee to blow his whistle. Oh, and it's important to not drop the ball.

'He's gone down quicker than a big lad on a see-saw..'


Italians playing well and frustrating England.

Rileybobs wrote:Referee having to explain the rules of the game to professional internationals...only in rugby.

They're laws.

and its important for the smug rugby fans to remind all football fans how to behave.

Rileybobs wrote:Referee having to explain the rules of the game to professional internationals...only in rugby.

As bedfords says they are laws. Obviously you wouldn't get this in football because players aren't interested in the Laws of the Game anyway, as is blatantly obvious when you listen to all those pundits who are ex-players. Ignorance is bliss.

bedfords wrote:They're laws.

Is there a difference in a sporting context?

If football fans behaved like rugby fans.....

You could have a pint or 2 watching the game without fear of a scrap.

Italy leading. Eddie's half time team talk should be interesting.

Italians leading at half-time. Deservedly.

Not quite going to plan for England is it ? Blimey !

You not at this one then Hampstead?

Deserved lead. England out thought. Need to stop showing their lack of knowledge of the laws of the game. Not professional.

Jones out thought in the coaching stakes! All credit to Italy using the laws to their advantage.

its a rough, tough genuine sport, no doubt about that.

It has been force fed to an unwilling public for decades. This was primarily the Oxbridge toffs at the BBC, they ran a corporation, therefore they used the outside broadcast units like personal playthings. Nobody, and I mean nobody was watching rugby union. That didnt stop them though.

Nowadays the advertisers and sponsors can reap the rewards.

If you don't commit men to a ruck (where the balls on the floor and you can't handle it unless you're stood on both feet) then it's still a tackle, and there is no offside line. It's a tactic you see in 7's all the time, where you want to cover the width of the pitch, so you let the tacklers sort out the ball where the tackle takes place. Then the defenders can stand where they want, so in front of the ball disrupting the ball restart. Again, you'll see that in 7's, the ball comes out of the tackle and there's a defender making an interception.

Wile

It's rugby, not foxhunting. Force-fed ?

Excellent from Dallaglialialio, called the Italian tactics "surrenderism".

Not sure if it's a word but it's always been a strength of the Italians.

Good bit of quick thinking there.

Normality has been resumed.

TFFT.

Danny Care beginning to run the show..a top player.

FFS

Poor tackling

Not good kicking either

Normal service resumed. Thank goodness.

"Like a Bull running down a hill"

I thought that was funny too.

Belting game, well done England, and hard luck Italy.

You can't say that wasn't an interesting game.

Not unless you just want to be contrary.

Well a very decent second half, 36-15 to England at the end...Joe Launchbury deservedly MOM, and a top. game by Itoje.

Fair play to Italy for coming up with something different, the non-contesting of rucks, which flummoxed England for a while, until they worked out what to do...at times, some great play by England.

A week's break now and Scotland are up next at Twickenham.

Well a very decent second half, 36-15 to England at the end...Joe Launchbury deservedly MOM, and a top. game by Itoje.

Fair play to Italy for coming up with something different, the non-contesting of rucks, which flummoxed England for a while, until they worked out what to do...at times, some great play by England.

A week's break now and Scotland are up next at Twickenham.

Scotland playing well at the moment so next week should be a good game.

Ireland away will no doubt be the most difficult.

FAO England RFU:

An entertaining match, most rugby fans seem to be happy with a bit of innovation from Italy but the whinging from various ex-England players, Jones, etc seems a bit petty.

Will be interesting to see if the laws get changed at some point to bring in an offside line from the tackle.

England didn't think on their feet and adapt quickly but if people think that the way forward is to not contest the ball at the tackle then they'll get slaughtered.

I doubt that tactic will be used again in a hurry. Coaches will put some training into how to deal with it effectively (pick & go, pick and go etc). When the other team is practised at dealing with it, it'd become a weakness to play that way.
It does appear that the Italy management team discussed this tactic with the ref on the day before the game to clarify what they could/couldn't do etc and in the process learnt something themselves about a recent tweak to the law that made them change their plans slightly.
Anyway, roll on the next round of games in a fortnight. Wales v Ireland for starters then Eng v Scotland (Italy v France won't be close now that Italy have played their trump card).

I can't see it being used again as extensively as Italy did but it could become a call to be used once or twice in a match to throw some confusion in.